Category Archives: Prairie Insects

Here are two photos that are completely unrelated to each other. Why? Because I feel like it. So there. Ok, I guess both photos were taken in a Nebraska prairie. That’s makes them kind of related, right? 5 points to … Continue reading →

Ok, I admit it – I’m a sucker for crab spiders. As much as I enjoy looking at prairie flowers, I enjoy them even more when there’s a crab spider lying in wait among their petals. I must have more … Continue reading →

“WOW! That’s a GIGANTIC mosquito!!” That is a common response to most people’s first sighting of a crane fly, a flying insect with a wingspan of 1-2 cm or more. Although they do somewhat resemble very large mosquitoes, crane flies … Continue reading →

On my last trip to the Niobrara Valley Preserve, I photographed the bark of wildfire-killed pine trees in warm late day light. I liked both the patterns and the color and was just trying to make some visually-interesting images. As … Continue reading →

He was engaging and informative – feeding our tour group piece after piece of the fascinating history of the people and landscape of the Wildcat Hills Landscape. The first guest speaker on the 2014 Nebraska Natural Legacy Conference Field Trip to the … Continue reading →

“A Land Ethic” is the concluding essay in Aldo Leopold’s 1949 book, A Sand County Almanac, and is the most powerful and relevant piece of conservation writing I’ve ever read. Leopold’s essay spells out the changes we need to make in … Continue reading →

For no particular reason, here are two unrelated photos from the same day. Both photographs were taken on September 28, 2014 at our family prairie south of Aurora, Nebraska. I wish I could come up with a pithy and informative … Continue reading →

Back in August, I posted some questions to readers about what they look for when evaluating their own prairies. I got some excellent responses, which I really appreciated. If you missed them, you can re-read that post and those comments … Continue reading →

Nearly-decapitated sunflower heads, scattered across the prairie. Oh, the devastation! Who could be carrying out such an evil plan? (Ok, more accurately, a weevil plan?) The head-clipping weevil, aka the Silphium weevil (Haplorhynchites aeneus) is a small dark-colored weevil, less … Continue reading →

Ambush bugs are scary-looking little predators. Their stocky bodies are heavily armored up front, and they have very thick raptorial forelegs like those of praying mantises. I usually only spot ambush bugs when I’m photographing something else such as flowers … Continue reading →